Love And Sorrow In Venus And Adonis - 1441 Words

B) Making reference to Ovid’s Metamorphoses, discuss the ways in which William Shakespeare’s Venus and Adonis presents the relationship between love and sorrow. The relationship between Love and Sorrow is very complex in William Shakespeare’s Venus and Adonis, as the tale leaves out key parts of the myth, in order to be as entertaining as possible. That is where Ovid’s Metamorphoses comes into the picture – as it almost ‘fills in the gaps’ of Shakespeare’s recounting. Throughout both instances of the myth, the meaning of love is constantly being played with, and a lot of the time the definition lends itself better to that of lust’s. In Shakespeare’s Venus and Adonis, Venus comes to terms with her true feelings as Adonis lay there dying in†¦show more content†¦To grow unto himself was his desire, And so tis thine; but know, it is as good To wither in my breast as in his blood. Here was thy fathers bed, here in my breast; Thou art the next of blood, and tis thy right. Lo, in this hollow cradle take thy rest; My throbbing heart shall rock thee day and night: There shall not be one minute in an hour Wherein I will not kiss my sweet loves flower.† (Shakespeare, William) In Ovid’s Metamorphoses’, we learn the name of this flower is the Anemone – and in turn, we learn that Venus is right about her father. In Mythology, Venus/Aphrodite is believed to be born from seafoam. The Anemone is not only a purple flower found in Greece, but the name of an animal that lives under the sea – hence the connection to her father. In this final epilogue, we learn Venus’ true feelings for Adonis. She truly did love him, and that flower is a symbol of that of â€Å"a forsaken love of any kind† (Anemone Flower Meaning - Flower Meaning). In Ovid’s Metamorphoses, we find out the backstory that leads up to this moment in the woods. Adonis’ parents, Cinyras and Myrrha have a non-conventional relationship – as Cinyras is also Myrrha’s father. This leads to death of Myrrha and a loveShow MoreRelatedThe Goddess of Love, Desire, and Beauty, Aphrodite, was Worshipped by Ancient Greece for Many More Reason692 Words   |  3 PagesToday we look at Aphrodite as a goddess of love, desire, and beauty, but in ancient Greece she was an Olympian who was worshipped on many other occasions for a great array of reasons. Her powers carried weight in the many realms of love, protection, desire, and even war. Aphrodite was said to be born of the sea from the severed genitals of Ouranos. While the myth says she washed upon the shores of Cyprus in the foam of the ocean, her actual origins are more unclear. She does not seem to be nativeRead MoreElizabethan Poetry Essay582 Words   |  3 Pagescontributions to this anthology. Wyatt transplanted the sonnet form from Italy to England.Both Wyatt and Surrey wrote sonnets based on the Petrarchan model, the form which immortalized by Shakespeare and Milton. They brought the theme romantic personal love in poetry to Britain. Surrey translated the Aeneid of Virgil into English. Edmond Spenser (1552-99) The publication of Spensers The Shepherds Calendar (1579) marked the beginning of the golden age of Elizabethan Literature. The ShepherdsRead More Shakespeare?s Sonnets: The Theme Of Love Essay1228 Words   |  5 Pagesmonuments of a remarkable age. The greatness of Shakespeare’s achievement was largely made possible by the work of his immediate predecessors, Sidney and Spenser. Shakespeare’s sonnets are intensely personal and are records of his hopes and fears, love and friendships, infatuations and disillusions that in turn acquire a universal quality through their intensity. The vogue of the sonnet in the Elizabethan age was brief but was very intense. Sir Thomas Wyatt and The Earl of Surrey brought the PetrarchanRead MoreShakespeares Sonnets: the Theme of Love1314 Words   |  6 Pagesmonuments of a remarkable age. The greatness of Shakespeares achievement was largely made possible by the work of his immediate predecessors, Sidney and Spenser. br brShakespeares sonnets are intensely personal and are records of his hopes and fears, love and friendships, infatuations and disillusions that in turn acquire a universal quality through their intensity. br brThe vogue of the sonnet in the Elizabethan age was brief but was very intense. Sir Thomas Wyatt and The Earl of Surrey broughtRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s The London Theatre Records ( Bloom )2308 Words   |  10 Pagesmost frequently performed, read, and written about (â€Å"William Shakespeare† 1333). The closing of theaters in London due to the plague marked a period of time, when Shakespeare wrote two long narrative poems that were admired. His first poem, Venus and Adonis was written in 1592 and in 1593, he wrote The Rape of Lucrece, both are dedicated to Henry Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton (â€Å"William Shakespeare† 1333). Shakespeare wrote 156 sonnets from the 1590s to the early 1600s, which were not published